Kildare Walking Festival 2017

The Kildare Walking Festival 2017 got under way yesterday and there is a full programme of free walking tours organised for the rest of the month, writes Brian Byrne.

We will keep you updated over the next few weeks, but some of this week's walks may well be of interest as family events that will get adults and children into the fresh air and pick up a lot of heritage and environment information in a fun way.

This evening there is a guided walk through Kildoon Wood in Nurney, which will take participants through bog and woodland trails and provide an insight into the activities of local volunteers during the rebellion of 1798. It starts at Martins Pub, Kildoon, at 7.30pm and the walk leader is Michael at 045 980546.

Tomorrow evening, a guided walk around Monasterevin, 'the Venice of Ireland', will show off the associations of Count John McCormack and the poet Gerald Manley Hopkins to the town. That's at 7.30pm, and the guide is Mary on 087 2358355.

On Wednesday morning, a guided walk through Straffan Wood Parklands at the K Club will start out at 11am, meeting at Straffan House. The walk leader is Breda, who can be contacted at 0879630719.

The Kildare Walking Festival is organised in association with the Kildare Sports Partnership.